Method for forming interconnection structure

ABSTRACT

In a method for forming an interconnection structure, first, second and third insulating films and a thin film are sequentially formed over lower-level metal interconnects. Then, the thin film is masked with a first resist pattern and etched to form a mask pattern with openings for interconnects. Next, the third insulating film is masked with a second resist pattern and dry-etched such that the third insulating film and the first and second resist patterns are etched at a high rate and that the second insulating film is etched at a low rate to form openings for contact holes in the third insulating film and remove the first and second resist patterns. Then, the second insulating film is masked with the third insulating film and dry-etched such that the second insulating film is etched at a high rate and that the first and third insulating films are etched at a low rate to form the openings for contact holes in the second insulating film. Then, the third and first insulating films are masked with the mask pattern and the second insulating film, respectively, and dry-etched such that the first and third insulating films are etched at a high rate and that the mask pattern and the second insulating film are etched at a low rate to form wiring grooves and contact holes in the third and first insulating films, respectively. Finally, upper-level metal interconnects and contacts are formed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for forming aninterconnection structure in a semiconductor integrated circuit.

[0002] As the number of devices, integrated within a singlesemiconductor integrated circuit, has been tremendously increasing thesedays, wiring delay has also been increasing noticeably. This is becausethe larger the number of devices integrated, the larger line-to-linecapacitance (i.e., parasitic capacitance between metal interconnects),thus interfering with the performance improvement of a semiconductorintegrated circuit. The wiring delay is so-called “RC delay”, which isproportional to the product of the resistance of metal interconnectionand the line-to-line capacitance.

[0003] In other words, to reduce the wiring delay, either the resistanceof metal interconnection or the line-to-line capacitance should bereduced.

[0004] In order to reduce the interconnection resistance, IBM Corp.,Motorola, Inc., etc. have reported semiconductor integrated circuitsusing copper, not aluminum alloy, as a material for metal interconnects.A copper material has a specific resistance about two-thirds as high asthat of an aluminum alloy material. Accordingly, in accordance withsimple calculation, the wiring delay involved with the use of a coppermaterial for metal interconnects can be about two-thirds of thatinvolved with the use of an aluminum alloy material therefor. That is tosay, the operating speed can be increased by about 1.5 times.

[0005] However, the number of devices, integrated within a singlesemiconductor integrated circuit, is expected to further increase byleaps and bounds from now on, thus increasing the wiring delayconsiderably. Therefore, it is concerned that even the use of copper asan alternate metal interconnection material would not be able to catchup with such drastic increase. Also, the specific resistance of copperas a metal interconnection material is just a little bit higher than,but almost equal to, that of gold or silver. Accordingly, even if goldor silver is used instead of copper as a metal interconnection material,the wiring delay can be reduced only slightly.

[0006] Under these circumstances, not only reducing interconnectionresistance but also suppressing line-to-line capacitance play a key rolein further increasing the number of devices that can be integratedwithin a single semiconductor integrated circuit. And the relativedielectric constant of an interlevel insulating film should be reducedto suppress the line-to-line capacitance. A silicon dioxide film hasheretofore been used as a typical material for an interlevel insulatingfilm. The relative dielectric constant of a silicon dioxide film is,however, about 4 to about 4.5. Thus, it would be difficult to apply asilicon dioxide film to a semiconductor integrated circuit incorporatingan even larger number of devices.

[0007] In order to solve such a problem, fluorine-doped silicon dioxidefilm, low-dielectric-constant spin-on-glass (SOG) film, organic polymerfilm and so on have been proposed as alternate interlevel insulatingfilms with respective relative dielectric constants smaller than that ofa silicon dioxide film.

[0008] The relative dielectric constant of a fluorine-doped silicondioxide film is about 3.3 to about 3.7, which is about 20 percent lowerthan that of a conventional silicon dioxide film. Nevertheless, afluorine-doped silicon dioxide film is highly hygroscopic, and easilyabsorbs water in the air, resulting in various problems in practice. Forexample, when the fluorine-doped silicon dioxide film absorbs water,SiOH groups, having a high relative dielectric constant, are introducedinto the film. As a result, the relative dielectric constant of thefluorine-doped silicon dioxide film adversely increases, or the SiOHgroups react with the water during a heat treatment to release H₂O gas.In addition, fluorine free radicals, contained in the fluorine-dopedsilicon dioxide film, segregate near the surface thereof during a heattreatment and react with Ti, contained in a TiN layer formed thereon asan adhesion layer, to form a TiF film, which easily peels off.

[0009] An HSQ (hydrogen silsesquioxane) film, composed of Si, O and Hatoms, is an exemplary low-dielectric-constant SOG film. In the HSQfilm, the number of the H atoms is about two-thirds of that of the Oatoms. However, the HSQ film releases a larger amount of water than aconventional silicon dioxide film. Accordingly, since it is difficult toform a buried interconnection line in the HSQ film, a patterned metalfilm should be formed as metal interconnects on the HSQ film.

[0010] Also, since the HSQ film cannot adhere so strongly to metalinterconnects, a CVD oxide film should be formed between the metalinterconnects and the HSQ film to improve the adhesion therebetween.However, in such a case, if the CVD oxide film is formed on the metalinterconnects, then the substantial line-to-line capacitance is equal tothe serial capacitance formed by the HSQ and CVD films. This is becausethe CVD oxide film with a high dielectric constant exists between themetal interconnects. Accordingly, the resulting line-to-line capacitanceis larger as compared with using the HSQ film alone.

[0011] An organic polymer film, as well as the low-dielectric-constantSOG film, cannot adhere strongly to metal interconnects, either.Accordingly, a CVD oxide film should be formed as an adhesion layerbetween the metal interconnects and the organic polymer film, too.

[0012] Moreover, an etch rate, at which an organic polymer film isetched, is approximately equal to an ash rate, at which a resist patternis ashed with oxygen plasma. Accordingly, a usual resist applicationprocess is not applicable in such a situation, because the organicpolymer film is likely to be damaged during ashing and removing theresist pattern. Therefore, a proposed alternate process includes:forming a CVD oxide film on an organic polymer film; forming a resistfilm on the CVD oxide film; and then etching the resist film using theCVD oxide film as an etch stopper, or a protective film.

[0013] However, during the step of forming the CVD oxide film on theorganic polymer film, the surface of the organic polymer film is exposedto a reactive gas containing oxygen. Accordingly, the organic polymerfilm reacts with oxygen to take in polar groups such as carbonyl groupsand ketone groups. As a result, the relative dielectric constant of theorganic polymer film disadvantageously increases.

[0014] Also, in forming inlaid copper interconnects in the organicpolymer film, a TiN adhesion layer, for example, should be formed aroundwiring grooves formed in the organic polymer film, because the organicpolymer film cannot adhere strongly to the metal interconnects. However,since the TiN film has a high resistance, the effective cross-sectionalarea of the metal interconnects decreases. Consequently, the intendedeffect attainable by the use of the copper lines, i.e., reduction inresistance, would be lost.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0015] An object of the present invention is providing a method forforming an interconnection structure in which an insulating film with alow dielectric constant can be formed by an ordinary resist applicationprocess.

[0016] A first method for forming an interconnection structure accordingto the present invention includes the steps of: a) forming a firstinsulating film over lower-level metal interconnects; b) forming asecond insulating film, having a different composition than that of thefirst insulating film, over the first insulating film; c) forming athird insulating film, having a different composition than that of thesecond insulating film, over the second insulating film; d) forming athin film over the third insulating film; e) forming a first resistpattern, having a plurality of openings for forming wiring grooves, onthe thin film; f) etching the thin film using the first resist patternas a mask, thereby forming a mask pattern out of the thin film to havethe openings for forming wiring grooves; g) forming a second resistpattern, having a plurality of openings for forming contact holes, onthe third insulating film; h) dry-etching the third insulating filmunder such conditions that the third insulating film and the first andsecond resist patterns are etched at a relatively high rate and that thesecond insulating film is etched at a relatively low rate, therebypatterning the third insulating film to have the openings for formingcontact holes and removing the first and second resist patterns eitherentirely or partially with respective lower parts thereof left; i)dry-etching the second insulating film using the patterned thirdinsulating film as a mask under such conditions that the secondinsulating film is etched at a relatively high rate and that the firstand third insulating films are etched at a relatively low rate, therebypatterning the second insulating film to have the openings for formingcontact holes; j) dry-etching the third and first insulating films usingthe mask pattern and the patterned second insulating film as respectivemasks under such conditions that the first and third insulating filmsare etched at a relatively high rate and that the mask pattern and thesecond insulating film are etched at a relatively low rate, therebyforming wiring grooves and contact holes in the third and firstinsulating films, respectively; and k) filling in the wiring grooves andthe contact holes with a metal film, thereby forming upper-level metalinterconnects and contacts connecting the lower- and upper-level metalinterconnects together.

[0017] In the first method of the present invention, the thirdinsulating film is dry-etched under such conditions that the thirdinsulating film and the first and second resist patterns are etched at arelatively high rate and that the second insulating film is etched at arelatively low rate, thereby patterning the third insulating film andremoving the first and second resist patterns in the step h).Accordingly, it is not necessary to perform the step of ashing andremoving the first and second resist patterns with oxygen plasma. Inother words, since it is possible to prevent the third insulating filmfrom being damaged during ashing and removing a resist pattern, alow-dielectric-constant insulating film, which would otherwise bedamaged easily by oxygen plasma, may be used as the third insulatingfilm. As a result, an interlevel insulating film with a low dielectricconstant can be formed by an ordinary resist application process.

[0018] In addition, the second insulating film can be used as an etchstopper while the wiring grooves are formed by dry-etching the thirdinsulating film using the mask pattern as a mask in the step j).Accordingly, the depth of each wiring groove can be equalized with thethickness of the third insulating film. That is to say, the depth of thewiring grooves can be defined by self-alignment.

[0019] Moreover, the composition of the second insulating film isdifferent from that of the third insulating film. Thus, the secondinsulating film can be used as an etch stopper while the wiring groovesare formed by dry-etching the third insulating film using the maskpattern as a mask in the step j).

[0020] In one embodiment of the present invention, the first methodpreferably further includes the step of forming a metal adhesion layerover part of the third insulating film exposed inside the wiring groovesand part of the first insulating film exposed inside the contact holesbetween the steps j) and k).

[0021] In such an embodiment, the adhesion between the upper-level metalinterconnects and the third insulating film and between the contacts andthe first insulating film can be improved.

[0022] In another embodiment of the present invention, the thirdinsulating film is preferably mainly composed of an organic component.

[0023] In such an embodiment, the conditions employed in the step h),i.e., that the third insulating film and the first and second resistpatterns are etched at a relatively high rate and that the secondinsulating film is etched at a relatively low rate, are realized withmuch more certainty.

[0024] In this embodiment, the step c) preferably includes forming thethird insulating film by a CVD process using a reactive gas containingperfluorodecalin.

[0025] Then, a film mainly composed of an organic component and having alow relative dielectric constant can be formed as the third insulatingfilm with a lot more certainty.

[0026] In another embodiment, the first insulating film is alsopreferably mainly composed of an organic component.

[0027] Then, the conditions employed in the step i), i.e., that thesecond insulating film is etched at a relatively high rate and that thefirst and third insulating films are etched at a relatively low rate,are realized with much more certainty. At the same time, the conditionsemployed in the step j), i.e., that the first and third insulating filmsare etched at a relatively high rate and that the mask pattern and thesecond insulating film are etched at a relatively low rate, are alsorealized with much more certainty.

[0028] In an embodiment where the first and third insulating films areboth mainly composed of organic components, the first method preferablyfurther includes the step of forming an adhesion layer over part of thethird insulating film exposed inside the wiring grooves and part of thefirst insulating film exposed inside the contact holes by a plasmaprocess using a reactive gas containing nitrogen between the steps j)and k).

[0029] In such a case, the adhesion between the upper-level metalinterconnects and the third insulating film mainly composed of anorganic component, and between the contacts and the first insulatingfilm mainly composed of an organic component can be improvedsubstantially without fail.

[0030] In the embodiment where the first insulating film is mainlycomposed of an organic component, the step a) preferably includesforming the first insulating film by a CVD process using a reactive gascontaining perfluorodecalin.

[0031] In such a case, a film mainly composed of an organic componentand having a low relative dielectric constant can be formed as the firstinsulating film with a lot more certainty.

[0032] A second method for forming an interconnection structureaccording to the present invention includes the steps of: a) forming afirst insulating film over lower-level metal interconnects; b) forming asecond insulating film, having a different composition than that of thefirst insulating film, over the first insulating film; c) forming athird insulating film, having a different composition than that of thesecond insulating film, over the second insulating film; d) forming athin film over the third insulating film; e) forming a first resistpattern, having a plurality of openings for forming wiring grooves, onthe thin film; f) etching the thin film using the first resist patternas a mask, thereby forming a mask pattern out of the thin film to havethe openings for forming wiring grooves; g) forming a second resistpattern, having a plurality of openings for forming contact holes, onthe third insulating film; h) dry-etching the third insulating filmusing the first and second resist patterns as a mask under suchconditions that the third insulating film is etched at a relatively highrate and that the second insulating film and the first and second resistpatterns are etched at a relatively low rate, thereby patterning thethird insulating film to have the openings for forming contact holes; i)dry-etching the second insulating film using the first and second resistpatterns as a mask under such conditions that the second insulating filmis etched at a relatively high rate and that the first and thirdinsulating films and the first and second resist patterns are etched ata relatively low rate, thereby patterning the second insulating film tohave the openings for forming contact holes; j) removing the first andsecond resist patterns; k) dry-etching the third and first insulatingfilms using the mask pattern and the patterned second insulating film asrespective masks under such conditions that the first and thirdinsulating films are etched at a relatively high rate and that the maskpattern and the second insulating film are etched at a relatively lowrate, thereby forming wiring grooves and contact holes in the third andfirst insulating films, respectively; and l) filling in the wiringgrooves and the contact holes with a metal film, thereby formingupper-level metal interconnects and contacts connecting the lower- andupper-level metal interconnects together.

[0033] In the second method of the present invention, even if a damagedlayer is formed in respective parts of the first and third insulatingfilms that are exposed inside the openings for forming contact holes inthe second insulating film during the step j) of removing the first andsecond resist patterns, the damaged layer can be removed without fail inthe next step k). In this step, the third and first insulating films aredry-etched using the mask pattern and the patterned second insulatingfilm as respective masks under such conditions that the first and thirdinsulating films are etched at a relatively high rate and that the maskpattern and the second insulating film are etched at a relatively lowrate, thereby forming wiring grooves and contact holes in the third andfirst insulating films, respectively. Accordingly,low-dielectric-constant insulating films, which would otherwise bedamaged easily by oxygen plasma, can be used as the first and thirdinsulating films. As a result, an interlevel insulating film with a lowdielectric constant can be formed by an ordinary resist applicationprocess.

[0034] In one embodiment of the present invention, the third insulatingfilm is preferably a low-dielectric-constant SOG film with a siloxaneskeleton.

[0035] In such an embodiment, an interlevel insulating film with a lowdielectric constant can be formed by an ordinary resist applicationprocess.

[0036] A third method for forming an interconnection structure accordingto the present invention includes the steps of: a) forming a firstinsulating film over lower-level metal interconnects; b) forming asecond insulating film, having a different composition than that of thefirst insulating film, over the first insulating film; c) forming athird insulating film, having a different composition than that of thesecond insulating film, over the second insulating film; d) forming afourth insulating film, having a different composition than that of thethird insulating film, over the third insulating film; e) forming a thinfilm over the fourth insulating film; f) forming a first resist patternon the thin film, the first resist pattern having openings for formingwiring grooves; g) etching the thin film using the first resist patternas a mask, thereby forming a mask pattern out of the thin film to havethe openings for forming wiring grooves; h) removing the first resistpattern and then forming a second resist pattern on the fourthinsulating film and the mask pattern, the second resist pattern havingopenings for forming contact holes; i) dry-etching the fourth insulatingfilm using the second resist pattern and the mask pattern as a mask,thereby patterning the fourth insulating film to have the openings forforming contact holes; j) dry-etching the third insulating film usingthe patterned fourth insulating film as a mask, thereby patterning thethird insulating film to have the openings for forming contact holes; k)dry-etching the patterned fourth insulating film and the secondinsulating film using the mask pattern and the patterned thirdinsulating film as respective masks, thereby forming wiring grooves inthe patterned fourth insulating film and patterning the secondinsulating film to have the openings for forming contact holes; l)dry-etching the patterned third insulating film and the first insulatingfilm using the mask pattern and the patterned second insulating film asrespective masks, thereby forming the wiring grooves and the contactholes in the patterned third insulating film and the first insulatingfilm, respectively; and m) filling in the wiring grooves and the contactholes with a metal film, thereby forming upper-level metal interconnectsand contacts connecting the lower- and upper-level metal interconnectstogether.

[0037] In the third method of the present invention, the fourthinsulating film exists on the third insulating film during the removalof the first resist pattern in the step h). Accordingly, even if thefirst resist pattern is removed by oxygen plasma, the third insulatingfilm is not damaged. Also, the second insulating film exists on thefirst insulating film during dry-etching the third insulating film inthe step j). Accordingly, the first insulating film is not damaged,either. Thus, low-dielectric-constant insulating films, which wouldotherwise be damaged easily by oxygen plasma or dry etching, can be usedas the first and third insulating films. As a result, an interlevelinsulating film with a low dielectric constant can be formed by anordinary resist application process.

[0038] In one embodiment of the present invention, at least one of thefirst and third insulating films is preferably mainly composed of anorganic component.

[0039] In such an embodiment, the relative dielectric constant of theinterlevel insulating film can be reduced.

[0040] In another embodiment of the present invention, a size of theopenings of the second resist pattern for forming contact holes ispreferably larger than a designed size of the contact holes in adirection vertical to a direction in which the upper-level metalinterconnects extend.

[0041] In such an embodiment, even if the openings of the second resistpattern for forming contact holes have misaligned with the openings ofthe mask pattern for forming wiring grooves, the openings of thepatterned fourth insulating film for forming contact holes can be formedto be self-aligned with the openings of the mask pattern for formingwiring grooves. This is because the openings of the patterned fourthinsulating film for forming contact holes are formed in respectiveregions where the openings of the second resist pattern for formingcontact holes overlap with corresponding openings of the mask patternfor forming wiring grooves. As a result, the connection between thecontacts and the upper-level metal interconnects is ensured.

[0042] A fourth method for forming an interconnection structureaccording to the present invention includes the steps of: a) forming afirst insulating film over lower-level metal interconnects; b) forming asecond insulating film, having a different composition than that of thefirst insulating film, over the first insulating film; c) forming athird insulating film, having a different composition than that of thesecond insulating film, over the second insulating film; d) forming athin film over the third insulating film; e) forming a first resistpattern on the thin film, the first resist pattern having openings forforming wiring grooves; f) etching the thin film using the first resistpattern as a mask, thereby forming a mask pattern out of the thin filmto have the openings for forming wiring grooves; g) removing the firstresist pattern and then forming a second resist pattern on the thirdinsulating film and the mask pattern, the second resist pattern havingopenings for forming contact holes; h) dry-etching the third insulatingfilm using the second resist pattern and the mask pattern as a mask,thereby patterning the third insulating film to have the openings forforming contact holes; i) dry-etching the second insulating film usingthe patterned third insulating film as a mask, thereby patterning thesecond insulating film to have the openings for forming contact holes;j) dry-etching the patterned third insulating film and the firstinsulating film using the mask pattern and the patterned secondinsulating film as respective masks, thereby forming wiring grooves andcontact holes in the patterned third insulating film and the firstinsulating film, respectively; and k) filling in the wiring grooves andthe contact holes with a metal film, thereby forming upper-level metalinterconnects and contacts connecting the lower- and upper-level metalinterconnects together.

[0043] In the fourth method of the present invention, the secondinsulating film exists on the first insulating film during dry-etchingthe third insulating film in the step h). Accordingly, the firstinsulating film is not damaged. Thus, low-dielectric-constant insulatingfilms, which would otherwise be damaged easily by oxygen plasma or dryetching, can be used as the first and third insulating films. As aresult, an interlevel insulating film with a low dielectric constant canbe formed by an ordinary resist application process.

[0044] In one embodiment of the present invention, at least one of thefirst and third insulating films is preferably mainly composed of anorganic component.

[0045] In such an embodiment, the relative dielectric constant of theinterlevel insulating film can be reduced.

[0046] In another embodiment of the present invention, a size of theopenings of the second resist pattern for forming contact holes ispreferably larger than a designed size of the contact holes in adirection vertical to a direction in which the upper-level metalinterconnects extend.

[0047] In such an embodiment, even if the openings of the second resistpattern for forming contact holes have misaligned with the openings ofthe mask pattern for forming wiring grooves, the openings of thepatterned third insulating film for forming contact holes can be formedto be self-aligned with the openings of the mask pattern for formingwiring grooves. This is because the openings of the patterned thirdinsulating film for forming contact holes are formed in respectiveregions where the openings of the second resist pattern for formingcontact holes overlap with corresponding openings of the mask patternfor forming wiring grooves. As a result, the connection between thecontacts and the upper-level metal interconnects is ensured.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0048] FIGS. 1(a) through 1(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming an interconnection structureaccording to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0049] FIGS. 2(a) through 2(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe first embodiment.

[0050] FIGS. 3(a) through 3(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe first embodiment.

[0051] FIGS. 4(a) through 4(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingproblems caused by the misalignment of the second resist pattern duringthe process of forming the interconnection structure of the firstembodiment.

[0052] FIGS. 5(a) through 5(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingthe problems caused by the misalignment of the second resist patternduring the process of forming the interconnection structure of the firstembodiment.

[0053] FIGS. 6(a) through 6(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingthe problems caused by the misalignment of the second resist patternduring the process of forming the interconnection structure of the firstembodiment.

[0054] FIGS. 7(a) through 7(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingmeasures to solve the problems caused by the misalignment of the secondresist pattern during the process of forming the interconnectionstructure of the first embodiment.

[0055] FIGS. 8(a) through 8(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingthe measures to solve the problems caused by the misalignment of thesecond resist pattern during the process of forming the interconnectionstructure of the first embodiment.

[0056] FIGS. 9(a) through 9(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming an interconnection structureaccording to the second embodiment of the present invention.

[0057] FIGS. 10(a) through 10(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe second embodiment.

[0058] FIGS. 11(a) through 11 c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe second embodiment.

[0059] FIGS. 12(a) through 12(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming an interconnection structureaccording to the third embodiment of the present invention.

[0060] FIGS. 13(a) through 13(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe third embodiment.

[0061] FIGS. 14(a) through 14(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe third embodiment.

[0062] FIGS. 15(a) through 15(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming an interconnection structureaccording to a modified example of the third embodiment.

[0063] FIGS. 16(a) through 16(d) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe modified example of the third embodiment.

[0064] FIGS. 17(a) through 17(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe modified example of the third embodiment.

[0065] FIGS. 18(a) through 18(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming an interconnection structureaccording to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

[0066] FIGS. 19(a) through 19(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe fourth embodiment.

[0067] FIGS. 20(a) through 20(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe fourth embodiment.

[0068] FIGS. 21(a) through 21 c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming an interconnection structureaccording to the fifth embodiment of the present invention.

[0069] FIGS. 22(a) through 22(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe fifth embodiment.

[0070] FIGS. 23(a) through 23(d) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe fifth embodiment.

[0071] FIGS. 24(a) through 24(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming an interconnection structureaccording to a modified example of the fifth embodiment.

[0072] FIGS. 25(a) through 25(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure inthe modified example of the fifth embodiment.

[0073] FIGS. 26(a) through 26(d) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure inthe modified example of the fifth embodiment.

[0074] FIGS. 27(a) and 27(b) are perspective views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure inthe modified example of the fifth embodiment.

[0075] FIGS. 28(a) and 28(b) are perspective views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure inthe modified example of the fifth embodiment.

[0076] FIGS. 29(a) and 29(b) are perspective views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure inthe modified example of the fifth embodiment.

[0077] FIGS. 30(a) through 30(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming an interconnection structureaccording to the sixth embodiment of the present invention.

[0078] FIGS. 31(a) through 31 c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe sixth embodiment.

[0079] FIGS. 32(a) through 32(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure ofthe sixth embodiment.

[0080] FIGS. 33(a) through 33(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming an interconnection structureaccording to a modified example of the sixth embodiment.

[0081] FIGS. 34(a) through 34(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure inthe modified example of the sixth embodiment.

[0082] FIGS. 35(a) through 35(c) are cross-sectional views illustratingrespective process steps for forming the interconnection structure inthe modified example of the sixth embodiment.

[0083]FIG. 36 is a plan view illustrating a positional relationshipbetween the openings of a mask pattern for forming wiring grooves andthe openings of a second resist pattern for forming contact holes in themodified example of the fifth embodiment.

[0084]FIG. 37(a) illustrates respective positional relationships betweenthe mask pattern and the second resist pattern and between a first metalinterconnect and an associated contact in the modified example of thefifth embodiment; and

[0085]FIG. 37(b) illustrates respective positional relationships betweenthe mask pattern and the second resist pattern and between a first metalinterconnect and an associated contact in the fifth embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS EMBODIMENT 1

[0086] Hereinafter, an exemplary method for forming an interconnectionstructure according to the first embodiment of the present inventionwill be described with reference to FIGS. 1(a) through 1(c), FIGS. 2(a)through 2(c) and FIGS. 3(a) through 3(c).

[0087] First, as shown in FIG. 1(a), a silicon nitride film 102 isformed over first metal interconnects 101 formed on a semiconductorsubstrate 100. The silicon nitride film 102 is formed to be 50 nm thick,for example, and used to protect the first metal interconnects 101during a subsequent etching process step. Thereafter, a first organicfilm 103 (first insulating film), mainly composed of an organiccomponent, is formed to be 1 μm thick, for example, on the siliconnitride film 102. Next, an organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104(second insulating film), containing an organic component in silicondioxide, is formed to be 50 nm thick, for example, on the first organicfilm 103. Then, a second organic film 105 (third insulating film),mainly composed of an organic component, is formed to be 400 nm thick,for example, on the organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104. And atitanium nitride film 106 is formed to be 50 nm thick, for example, onthe second organic film 105.

[0088] The first and second organic films 103 and 105 may be depositedby any arbitrary technique. For example, these films 103 and 105 may bedeposited by a plasma CVD process using a reactive gas mainly composedof perfluorodecalin. Also, hydrocarbon films or fluorine-containinghydrocarbon films, formed by plasma CVD, coating or thermal CVD, may beused as the first and second organic films 103 and 105.

[0089] Moreover, the first organic film 103 may be deposited by a plasmaCVD process using a reactive gas mainly composed of perfluorodecalin andorganic silane such as hexamethyl disiloxane, arylalkoxy silane oralkylalkoxy silane. In such a case, an organic/inorganic hybrid film canbe obtained.

[0090] Similarly, the organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104 mayalso be deposited by any arbitrary technique. For instance, the film 104may be deposited by a CVD process using a reactive gas mainly composedof phenyltrimethoxy silane. In such a case, an organic-containingsilicon dioxide film 104, having a structure in which a phenyl groupbonded to a silicon atom is introduced into silicon dioxide, can beobtained.

[0091] It should be noted that a thin film showing high etch selectivitywith respect to the first and second organic films 103 and 105 and theorganic-containing silicon dioxide film 104, i.e., a film etched at asufficiently low rate (e.g., silicon nitride film), may be used insteadof the titanium nitride film 106.

[0092] Next, as shown in FIG. 1(b), a first resist pattern 107, havingopenings for forming wiring grooves, is formed by lithography on thetitanium nitride film 106. Thereafter, the titanium nitride film 106 isdry-etched using the first resist pattern 107 as a mask, thereby forminga mask pattern 108 out of the titanium nitride film 106 as shown in FIG.1(c).

[0093] Subsequently, a second resist pattern 109, having openings forforming contact holes, is formed by lithography on the second organicfilm 105 without removing the first resist pattern 107. Then, the secondorganic film 105 is dry-etched, thereby forming a patterned secondorganic film 105A having the openings for forming contact holes as shownin FIG. 2(a). In this case, since the second organic film 105 and thefirst and second resist patterns 107 and 109 are all mainly composed oforganic components, the second organic film 105 is etched at asubstantially equal rate to that of the first and second resist patterns107 and 109. Thus, when the second organic film 105 is dry-etched, thefirst and second resist patterns 107 and 109 are also removedsimultaneously.

[0094] It should be noted that part of the second resist pattern 109 maybe left in the process step of dry-etching the second organic film 105.This is because the residual second resist pattern 109 can be removedduring a subsequent process step of forming wiring grooves 111 in thepatterned second organic film 105A (see FIG. 2(c)).

[0095] Then, the organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104 isdry-etched using the patterned second organic film 105A as a mask,thereby forming a patterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104Ahaving the openings for forming contact holes as shown in FIG. 2(b). Inthis process step, by selecting such etching conditions that theorganic-containing silicon dioxide film 104 is etched at a rate higherthan that of the patterned second organic film 105A, it is possible toprevent the patterned second organic film 105A from being erroneouslyetched.

[0096] Next, the patterned second organic film 105A is dry-etched usingthe mask pattern 108 as a mask, thereby forming the wiring grooves 111in the patterned second organic film 105A as shown in FIG. 2(c). At thesame time, the first organic film 103 is also dry-etched using thepatterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104A as a mask,thereby forming a patterned first organic film 103A having the contactholes as shown in FIG. 2(c).

[0097] Subsequently, the silicon nitride film 102 is dry-etched usingthe patterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104A as a mask,thereby forming a patterned silicon nitride film 102A and exposing thefirst metal interconnects 101 within the contact holes 110 as shown inFIG. 3(a).

[0098] Then, as shown in FIG. 3(b), an adhesion layer 112, made oftitanium nitride, is deposited to be 50 nm thick, for example, on thewall faces of the contact holes 110 and the wiring grooves 111.Thereafter, a metal film 113 is deposited over the entire surface of thesubstrate to completely fill in the contact holes 110 and the wiringgrooves 111. In this embodiment, the metal film 113 may be made of anyarbitrary metal. For example, copper, aluminum, gold, silver, nickel,cobalt, tungsten, or an alloy thereof may be used. Also, the metal film113 may be deposited by any arbitrary technique. For instance, plating,CVD or sputtering may be employed.

[0099] Finally, as shown in FIG. 3(c), respective portions of theadhesion layer 112, the metal film 113 and the mask pattern 108, whichare deposited on the patterned second organic film 105A, are removed bya CMP technique, for example. As a result, second metal interconnects114 and contacts 115, connecting the first and second metalinterconnects 101 and 114, are formed out of the metal film 113.

[0100] It should be noted that a multilevel interconnection structuremay be formed by forming respective films, interconnects and contacts onthe second metal interconnects 114 through the same process steps asthose described above.

[0101] In the first embodiment, the organic-containing silicon dioxidefilm 104 is formed by a CVD process using a reactive gas mainly composedof phenyltrimethoxy silane. Accordingly, the film 104 has a structure inwhich a phenyl group (i.e., an exemplary organic group), bonded to asilicon atom, is introduced into silicon dioxide. Thus, the film 104 canbe processed as well as a conventional CVD oxide film, and the relativedielectric constant of the film 104 is as low as that of theconventional CVD oxide film. In addition, the film 104 can adherestrongly to organic film, oxide film and metal film.

[0102] After the mask pattern 108 has been formed out of the titaniumnitride film 106, the second resist pattern 109 is formed withoutremoving the first resist pattern 107, and the first and second resistpatterns 107 and 109 are removed while the second organic film 105 isdry-etched. Thus, it is no longer necessary to ash and remove the firstand second resist patterns 107 and 109 with oxygen plasma. That is tosay, it is possible to prevent the second organic film 105 from beingdamaged during the step of ashing and removing a resist pattern.Accordingly, although the second organic film 105 with a low relativedielectric constant is used as an interlevel insulating film, anordinary resist application process is applicable to this embodiment.

[0103] Moreover, the wiring grooves 111 are formed by dry-etching thepatterned second organic film 105A using the mask pattern 108 as a maskand using the patterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104A asan etch stopper. Accordingly, the depth of the wiring grooves 111matches with the thickness of the second organic film 105. That is tosay, the depth of the wiring grooves 111 can be defined byself-alignment.

[0104] Hereinafter, problems caused by the misalignment of the secondresist pattern 109 with the first resist pattern 107 and the measuredtaken to solve the problems will be described.

[0105] First, it will be described with reference to FIGS. 4(a) through4(c), FIGS. 5(a) through 5(c) and FIGS. 6(a) through 6(c) what problemsare caused if the second resist pattern 109 has misaligned.

[0106] As in the first embodiment, a silicon nitride film 102 is firstformed to be 50 nm thick, for example, over first metal interconnects101 formed on a semiconductor substrate 100 as shown in FIG. 4(a).Thereafter, a first organic film 103, mainly composed of an organiccomponent, is formed to be 1 μm thick, for example, on the siliconnitride film 102.

[0107] Next, an organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104, containingan organic component in silicon dioxide, is formed to be 50 nm thick,for example, on the first organic film 103. Then, a second organic film105, mainly composed of an organic component, is formed to be 400 nmthick, for example, on the organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104.And a titanium nitride film 106 is formed to be 50 nm thick, forexample, on the second organic film 105.

[0108] Next, as shown in FIG. 4(b), a first resist pattern 107, havingopenings for forming wiring grooves, is formed on the titanium nitridefilm 106. Thereafter, the titanium nitride film 106 is dry-etched usingthe first resist pattern 107 as a mask, thereby forming a mask pattern108 out of the titanium nitride film 106 as shown in FIG. 4(c).

[0109] Subsequently, a second resist pattern 109, having openings forforming contact holes, is formed on the second organic film 105 withoutremoving the first resist pattern 107. As can be seen if FIGS. 5(a) and1(c) are compared with each other, the second resist pattern 109 hasmisaligned with the first resist pattern 107 in this case.

[0110] Then, the second organic film 105 is dry-etched, thereby forminga patterned second organic film 105A having the openings for formingcontact holes as shown in FIG. 5(a). As in the first embodiment, sincethe second organic film 105 and the first and second resist patterns 107and 109 are all mainly composed of organic components, the first andsecond resist patterns 107 and 109 are removed simultaneously with thedry-etching of the second organic film 105. In this case, since thesecond resist pattern 109 has misaligned with the first resist pattern107, the diameter of the openings for forming contact holes, which areprovided in the second organic film 105A, is smaller than desired.

[0111] Then, the organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104 isdry-etched using the patterned second organic film 105A as a mask,thereby forming a patterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104Ahaving the openings for forming contact holes as shown in FIG. 5(c).

[0112] Next, the patterned second organic film 105A is dry-etched usingthe mask pattern 108 as a mask, thereby forming the wiring grooves 111in the patterned second organic film 105A as shown in FIG. 6(a). At thesame time, the first organic film 103 is also dry-etched using thepatterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104A as a mask,thereby forming a patterned first organic film 103A having the contactholes 110 as shown in FIG. 6(a). Subsequently, the silicon nitride film102 is dry-etched using the patterned organic-containing silicon dioxidefilm 104A as a mask, thereby forming a patterned silicon nitride film102A and exposing the first metal interconnects 101 within the contactholes 110 as shown in FIG. 6(b).

[0113] Then, an adhesion layer 112, made of titanium nitride, isdeposited to be 50 nm thick, for example, on the wall faces of thecontact holes 110 and the wiring grooves 111. Thereafter, a metal filmis deposited over the entire surface of the substrate and respectiveportions of the adhesion layer 112, the metal film and the mask pattern108, which are deposited on the patterned second organic film 105A, areremoved by a CMP technique, for example. As a result, second metalinterconnects 114 are certainly formed. However, since the diameter ofthe contact holes 110 is smaller than desired, the contact holes 110cannot be completely filled in with the metal film, and the first andsecond metal interconnects 101 and 112 cannot be connected to eachother, resulting in a contact failure.

[0114] Next, it will be described with reference to FIGS. 7(a) through7(c) and FIGS. 8(a) through 8(c) what measures should be taken to solvethe problems caused by the misalignment of the second resist pattern109.

[0115] First, a second resist pattern 109, having openings for formingcontact holes, is formed through the same process steps as thosedescribed with reference to FIGS. 4(a) through 4(c) and FIG. 5(a). Inthis case, the second resist pattern 109 has also misaligned with thefirst resist pattern 107 (see FIG. 5(a)).

[0116] Thus, as shown in FIG. 7(a), the first resist pattern 107 and themask pattern 108 are dry-etched using the second resist pattern 109 as amask. In this manner, portions of the first resist pattern 107, notoverlapping with the second resist pattern 109, are removed and eachopening of the mask pattern 108 is expanded to be equal to or largerthan each opening for forming wiring grooves or each opening for formingcontact holes. As a result, the pattern for the openings of the secondresist pattern for forming contact holes 109 can be transferred to thefirst resist pattern 107 and the mask pattern 108.

[0117] Then, the second organic film 105 is dry-etched, thereby forminga patterned second organic film 105A having the openings for formingcontact holes as shown in FIG. 7(b). In this case, since the secondorganic film 105 and the first and second resist patterns 107 and 109are all mainly composed of organic components, the first and secondresist patterns 107 and 109 are removed simultaneously with thedry-etching of the second organic film 105.

[0118] Then, the organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104 isdry-etched using the patterned second organic film 105A as a mask,thereby forming a patterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104Ahaving the openings for forming contact holes as shown in FIG. 7(c).

[0119] As described above, the second resist pattern 109 has misalignedwith the first resist pattern 107. However, in this case, the patternfor the openings of the second resist pattern for forming contact holes109 has been successfully transferred to the first resist pattern 107and the mask pattern 108. Thus, the diameter of the openings for formingcontact holes, which have been formed in the patterned second organicfilm 105A and the patterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film104A, is a predetermined size.

[0120] Next, the patterned second organic film 105A is dry-etched usingthe mask pattern 108 as a mask, thereby forming the wiring grooves 111in the patterned second organic film 105A as shown in FIG. 8(a). At thesame time, the first organic film 103 is also dry-etched using thepatterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film 104A as a mask,thereby forming a patterned first organic film 103A having the contactholes 110 as shown in FIG. 8(a). Subsequently, the silicon nitride film102 is dry-etched using the patterned organic-containing silicon dioxidefilm 104A as a mask, thereby forming a patterned silicon nitride film102A and exposing the first metal interconnects 101 within the contactholes 110 as shown in FIG. 8(b).

[0121] Then, an adhesion layer 112, made of titanium nitride, isdeposited to be 50 nm thick, for example, on the wall faces of thecontact holes 110 and the wiring grooves 111. Thereafter, a metal filmis deposited over the entire surface of the substrate and respectiveportions of the adhesion layer 112, the metal film and the mask pattern108, which are deposited on the patterned second organic film 105A, areremoved by a CMP technique, for example. As a result, second metalinterconnects 114 and contacts 115 are formed out of the titaniumnitride film 112 and the metal film as shown in FIG. 8(c).

EMBODIMENT 2

[0122] Next, an exemplary method for forming an interconnectionstructure according to the second embodiment of the present inventionwill be described with reference to FIGS. 9(a) through 9(c), FIGS. 10(a)through 10(c) and FIGS. 11(a) through 11 c).

[0123] First, as shown in FIG. 9(a), a silicon nitride film 202 isformed to be 50 nm thick, for example, over first metal interconnects201 formed on a semiconductor substrate 200. Thereafter, a first organicfilm 203 (first insulating film), mainly composed of an organiccomponent, is formed to be 1 μm thick, for example, on the siliconnitride film 202. Next, an organic-containing silicon dioxide film 204(second insulating film), containing an organic component in silicondioxide, is formed to be 50 nm thick, for example, on the first organicfilm 203. Then, a second organic film 205 (third insulating film),mainly composed of an organic component, is formed to be 400 nm thick,for example, on the organic-containing silicon dioxide film 204. And atitanium nitride film 206 is formed to be 50 nm thick, for example, onthe second organic film 205.

[0124] The first and second organic films 203 and 205 may be depositedby any arbitrary technique. For example, these films 203 and 205 may bedeposited by a plasma CVD process using a reactive gas mainly composedof perfluorodecalin. Also, hydrocarbon films or fluorine-containinghydrocarbon films, formed by plasma CVD, coating or thermal CVD, may beused as the first and second organic films 203 and 205.

[0125] Similarly, the organic-containing silicon dioxide film 204 mayalso be deposited by any arbitrary technique. For instance, the film 204may be deposited by a CVD process using a reactive gas mainly composedof phenyltrimethoxy silane.

[0126] It should be noted that a thin film showing high etch selectivitywith respect to the first and second organic films 203 and 205 and theorganic-containing silicon dioxide film 204, i.e., a film etched at asufficiently low rate (e.g., silicon nitride film), may be used insteadof the titanium nitride film 206.

[0127] Next, as shown in FIG. 9(b), a first resist pattern 207, havingopenings for forming wiring grooves, is formed by lithography on thetitanium nitride film 206. Thereafter, the titanium nitride film 206 isdry-etched using the first resist pattern 207 as a mask, thereby forminga mask pattern 208 out of the titanium nitride film 206 as shown in FIG.9(c).

[0128] Subsequently, a second resist pattern 209, having openings forforming contact holes, is formed by lithography on the second organicfilm 205 without removing the first resist pattern 207. Then, the secondorganic film 205 is dry-etched, thereby forming a patterned secondorganic film 205A having the openings for forming contact holes as shownin FIG. 10(a). In this case, since the second organic film 205 and thefirst and second resist patterns 207 and 209 are all mainly composed oforganic components, the second organic film 205 is etched at a ratesubstantially equal to that of the first and second resist patterns 207and 209. Accordingly, when the second organic film 205 is dry-etched,the first and second resist patterns 207 and 209 are also removedsimultaneously.

[0129] If the second resist pattern 209 may have been misaligned withthe first resist pattern 207, then the first resist pattern 207 and themask pattern 208 should be dry-etched using the second resist pattern209 as a mask. In this manner, parts of the first resist pattern 207,not over-lapping with the second resist pattern 209, are removed and theopenings of the mask pattern 208 are expanded to be equal to or largerthan the openings for forming wiring grooves and contact holes asdescribed in the first embodiment.

[0130] Then, the organic-containing silicon dioxide film 204 isdry-etched using the patterned second organic film 205A as a mask,thereby forming a patterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film 204Ahaving the openings for forming contact holes as shown in FIG. 10(b).Next, the patterned second organic film 205A is dry-etched using themask pattern 208 as a mask, thereby forming the wiring grooves 211 inthe patterned second organic film 205A as shown in FIG. 10(c). At thesame time, the first organic film 203 is also dry-etched using thepatterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film 204A as a mask,thereby forming a patterned first organic film 203A having the contactholes 210 as also shown in FIG. 10(c).

[0131] Subsequently, the silicon nitride film 202 is dry-etched usingthe patterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film 204A as a mask,thereby forming a patterned silicon nitride film 202A and exposing thefirst metal interconnects 201 within the contact holes 210 as shown inFIG. 11(a).

[0132] Then, the patterned first and second organic films 203A and 205Aare subjected to plasma processing using ammonium gas. As a result, asshown in FIG. 11(b), an adhesion layer 212, including amino and amidegroups, is deposited on the wall faces of the patterned first organicfilm 203A exposed inside the contact holes 210 and on the wall faces ofthe patterned second organic film 205A exposed inside the wiring grooves211. Thereafter, a metal film 213 is deposited over the entire surfaceof the substrate to completely fill in the contact holes 210 and thewiring grooves 211. In this embodiment, the metal film 213 may be madeof any arbitrary metal. For example, copper, aluminum, gold, silver,nickel, cobalt, tungsten, or an alloy thereof may be used. Also, themetal film 213 may be deposited by any arbitrary technique. Forinstance, plating, CVD or sputtering may be employed.

[0133] Finally, as shown in FIG. 11c), respective portions of the metalfilm 213 and the mask pattern 208, which are deposited on the patternedsecond organic film 205A, are removed by a CMP technique, for example.As a result, second metal interconnects 214 and contacts 215 are formedout of the metal film 213.

[0134] It should be noted that a multilevel interconnection structuremay be formed by forming respective films, interconnects and contacts onthe second metal interconnects 214 through the same process steps asthose described above.

EMBODIMENT 3

[0135] Next, an exemplary method for forming an interconnectionstructure according to the third embodiment of the present inventionwill be described with reference to FIGS. 12(a) through 12(c), FIGS.13(a) through 13(c) and FIGS. 14(a) through 14(c).

[0136] First, as shown in FIG. 12(a), a silicon nitride film 302 isformed over first metal interconnects 301 formed on a semiconductorsubstrate 300. The silicon nitride film 302 is formed to be 50 nm thick,for example, and to protect the first metal interconnects 301 during asubsequent etching process step. Thereafter, a first organic-containingsilicon dioxide film 303 (first insulating film), containing an organiccomponent in silicon dioxide, is formed to be lam thick, for example, onthe silicon nitride film 302. Next, a low-dielectric-constant SOG film304 (second insulating film), having a siloxane skeleton, is depositedto be 400 nm thick, for example, on the first organic-containing silicondioxide film 303. Then, a second organic-containing silicon dioxide film305 (third insulating film), containing an organic component in silicondioxide, is formed to be 50 nm thick, for example, on thelow-dielectric-constant SOG film 304. And a titanium nitride film 306 isformed to be 50 nm thick, for example, on the second organic-containingsilicon dioxide film 305.

[0137] The first and second organic-containing silicon dioxide films 303and 305 may be deposited by any arbitrary technique. For example, thesefilms 303 and 305 may be deposited by a CVD process using a reactive gasmainly composed of phenyltrimethoxy silane. Also, an HSQ film may beused as the low-dielectric-constant SOG film 304 with a siloxaneskeleton.

[0138] It should be noted that a thin film showing high etch selectivitywith respect to the first and second organic-containing silicon dioxidefilms 303 and 305 and the low-dielectric-constant SOG film 304, i.e., afilm etched at a sufficiently low rate (e.g., silicon nitride film), maybe used instead of the titanium nitride film 306.

[0139] Next, as shown in FIG. 12(b), a first resist pattern 307, havingopenings for forming wiring grooves, is formed by lithography on thetitanium nitride film 306. Thereafter, the titanium nitride film 306 isdry-etched using the first resist pattern 307 as a mask, thereby forminga mask pattern 308 out of the titanium nitride film 306 as shown in FIG.12(c).

[0140] Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 13(a), the first resist pattern307 is removed and then a second resist pattern 309, having openings forforming contact holes, is formed on the second organic-containingsilicon dioxide film 305. Then, the second organic-containing silicondioxide film 305, the low-dielectric-constant SOG film 304 and the firstorganic-containing silicon dioxide film 303 are sequentially dry-etchedusing the second resist pattern 309 as a mask. As a result, a patternedsecond organic-containing silicon dioxide film 305A, a patternedlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 304A and a patterned firstorganic-containing silicon dioxide film 303A having contact holes 310are formed as shown in FIG. 13(b).

[0141] Next, as shown in FIG. 13(c), the second resist pattern 309 isremoved and the patterned second organic-containing silicon dioxide film305A is dry-etched using the mask pattern 308 as a mask, thereby formingopenings for forming wiring grooves in the patterned secondorganic-containing silicon dioxide film 305A. Thereafter, the patternedlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 304A is dry-etched using the maskpattern 308 and the patterned second organic-containing silicon dioxidefilm 305A having the openings for wiring grooves as a mask, therebyforming the wiring grooves 311. In forming the wiring grooves 311, byselecting such etching conditions that the first organic-containingsilicon dioxide film 303A is etched at a rate sufficiently lower thanthat of the low-dielectric-constant SOG film 304A, sufficientselectivity can be secured for the patterned first organic-containingsilicon dioxide film 303A. Accordingly, the depth of the wiring grooves311 can be determined univalently at the sum of the thicknesses of thesecond organic-containing silicon dioxide film 305 and thelow-dielectric-constant SOG film 304.

[0142] If the second resist pattern 309 may have been misaligned withthe first resist pattern 307, the mask pattern 308 should be dry-etchedusing the second resist pattern 309 as a mask before the secondorganic-containing silicon dioxide film 305 is dry-etched using thesecond resist pattern 309 as a mask. That is to say, if the mask pattern308 is partially exposed inside the openings of the second resistpattern 309 for forming contact holes because of the misalignment of thesecond resist pattern 309 with the first resist pattern 307, then themask pattern 308 is dry-etched using the second resist pattern 309 as amask. In this manner, the openings of the mask pattern 308 are expandedto include the openings for forming wiring grooves and contact holes.

[0143] Subsequently, the silicon nitride film 302 is dry-etched usingthe patterned first organic-containing silicon dioxide film 303A as amask, thereby forming a patterned silicon nitride film 302A and exposingthe first metal interconnects 301 within the contact holes 310 as shownin FIG. 14(a).

[0144] Then, as shown in FIG. 14(b), an adhesion layer 312, made oftitanium nitride, is deposited to be 50 nm thick, for example, on thewall faces of the contact holes 310 and the wiring grooves 311.Thereafter, a metal film 313 is deposited over the entire surface of thesubstrate to completely fill in the contact holes 310 and the wiringgrooves 311. In this embodiment, the metal film 313 may be made of anyarbitrary metal. For example, copper, aluminum, gold, silver, nickel,cobalt, tungsten, or an alloy thereof may be used. Also, the metal film313 may be deposited by any arbitrary technique. For instance, plating,CVD or sputtering may be employed.

[0145] Finally, as shown in FIG. 14(c), respective portions of theadhesion layer 312, the metal film 313 and the mask pattern 308, whichare deposited on the patterned second organic-containing silicon dioxidefilm 305A, are removed by a CMP technique, for example. As a result,second metal interconnects 314 and contacts 315, connecting the firstand second metal interconnects 301 and 314, are formed out of the metalfilm 313.

[0146] It should be noted that a multilevel interconnection structuremay be formed by forming respective films, interconnects and contacts onthe second metal interconnects 314 through the same process steps asthose described above.

[0147] In the third embodiment, while the first resist pattern 307 isashed and removed with oxygen plasma, the low-dielectric-constant SOGfilm 304 is not exposed to the oxygen plasma, because the secondorganic-containing silicon dioxide film 305 exists on thelow-dielectric-constant SOG film 304.

[0148] Also, in this embodiment, after the second organic-containingsilicon dioxide film 305, the low-dielectric-constant SOG film 304 andthe first organic-containing silicon dioxide film 303 have beensequentially dry-etched using the second resist pattern 309 as a mask,the second resist pattern 309 is ashed and removed with oxygen plasma.Accordingly, the regions of the patterned low-dielectric-constant SOGfilm 304A, which are exposed inside the openings for forming contactholes, are exposed to oxygen plasma and damaged. However, the damagedlayer, formed in the patterned low-dielectric-constant SOG film 304A,can be removed when the wiring grooves 311 are formed in the patternedlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 304A, and does not have harmful effectson subsequent process steps.

[0149] Accordingly, the low-dielectric-constant SOG film 304 may be madeof a material degradable with oxygen plasma. For example, in general, ifan HSQ film is exposed to oxygen plasma, the Si—H bonds thereof areoxidized and the content of water and the relative dielectric constantthereof both increase to deteriorate the reliability and performance ofthe device. However, according to the third embodiment, the patternedlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 304A, in which the wiring grooves 311have already been formed, is not affected by oxygen plasma. Thus, evenif an HSQ film is used as an interlevel insulating film, thedeterioration in reliability and performance of the device can beavoided.

MODIFIED EXAMPLE OF EMBODIMENT 3

[0150] Next, an exemplary method for forming an interconnectionstructure according to a modified example of the third embodiment of thepresent invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 15(a)through 15(c), FIGS. 16(a) through 16(c) and FIGS. 17(a) through 17(c).

[0151] First, as shown in FIG. 15(a), a silicon nitride film 352 isformed over first metal interconnects 351 formed on a semiconductorsubstrate 350. The silicon nitride film 352 is formed to be 50 nm thick,for example, and to protect the first metal interconnects 351 during asubsequent etching process step. Thereafter, a first silicon dioxidefilm 353 (first insulating film) is formed to be 1 μm thick, forexample, on the silicon nitride film 352. Next, an organic film 354(second insulating film) is deposited to be 400 nm thick, for example,on the first silicon dioxide film 353. Then, a second silicon dioxidefilm 355 (third insulating film) is formed to be 50 nm thick, forexample, on the organic film 354. And a titanium nitride film 356 isformed to be 50 nm thick, for example, on the second silicon dioxidefilm 355.

[0152] The first and second silicon dioxide films 353 and 355 may bedeposited by any arbitrary technique. For example, these films 353 and355 may be deposited by a CVD process using a reactive gas mainlycomposed of phenyltrimethoxy silane.

[0153] It should be noted that a thin film showing high etch selectivitywith respect to the first and second silicon dioxide films 353 and 355and the organic film 354, i.e., a film etched at a sufficiently low rate(e.g., silicon nitride film), may be used instead of the titaniumnitride film 356.

[0154] Next, as shown in FIG. 15(b), a first resist pattern 357, havingopenings for forming wiring grooves, is formed by lithography on thetitanium nitride film 356. Thereafter, the titanium nitride film 356 isdry-etched using the first resist pattern 357 as a mask, thereby forminga mask pattern 358 out of the titanium nitride film 356 as shown in FIG.15(c).

[0155] Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 16(a), the first resist pattern357 is removed and then a second resist pattern 359, having openings forforming contact holes, is formed on the second silicon dioxide film 355.Then, the second silicon dioxide film 355 and the organic film 354 aresequentially dry-etched using the second resist pattern 359 as a mask,thereby forming a patterned second silicon dioxide film 355A and apatterned organic film 354A having openings 360 for forming contactholes as shown in FIG. 16(b). In this case, the second resist pattern359 is removed during the step of etching the organic film 354.

[0156] Next, as shown in FIG. 16(c), the first silicon dioxide film 353is dry-etched using the patterned second silicon dioxide film 355A andthe patterned organic film 354A as a mask, thereby forming a patternedfirst silicon dioxide film 353A having contact holes 361. In thisetching process step, the mask pattern 358 is transferred to thepatterned second silicon dioxide film 355A. Accordingly, openings forforming wiring grooves are formed in the patterned second silicondioxide film 355A.

[0157] Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 16(d), the patterned organic film354A is dry-etched using the mask pattern 358 and the patterned secondsilicon dioxide film 355A having the openings for forming wiring groovesas a mask, thereby forming the wiring grooves 362. In forming the wiringgrooves 362, by selecting such etching conditions that the first silicondioxide film 353A is etched at a rate sufficiently lower than that ofthe organic film 354A, sufficient selectivity can be secured for thepatterned first silicon dioxide film 353A. Accordingly, the depth of thewiring grooves 362 can be determined univalently at the sum of thethicknesses of the second silicon dioxide film 355 and the organic film354.

[0158] If the second resist pattern 359 may have been misaligned withthe first resist pattern 357, then the mask pattern 358 should bedry-etched using the second resist pattern 359 as a mask before thesecond silicon dioxide film 355 is dry-etched using the second resistpattern 359 as a mask. That is to say, if the mask pattern 358 ispartially exposed inside the openings of the second resist pattern 359for forming contact holes because of the misalignment of the secondresist pattern 359 with the first resist pattern 357, then the maskpattern 358 is dry-etched using the second resist pattern 359 as a mask.In this manner, the openings of the mask pattern 358 are expanded toinclude the openings for forming wiring grooves and contact holes.

[0159] Subsequently, the silicon nitride film 352 is dry-etched usingthe patterned first silicon dioxide film 353A as a mask, thereby forminga patterned silicon nitride film 352A and exposing the first metalinterconnects 351 within the contact holes 361 as shown in FIG. 17(a).

[0160] Then, as shown in FIG. 17(b), an adhesion layer 363, made oftitanium nitride, is deposited to be 50 nm thick, for example, on thewall faces of the contact holes 361 and the wiring grooves 362.Thereafter, a metal film 364 is deposited over the entire surface of thesubstrate to completely fill in the contact holes 361 and the wiringgrooves 362. In this embodiment, the metal film 364 may be made of anyarbitrary metal. For example, copper, aluminum, gold, silver, nickel,cobalt, tungsten, or an alloy thereof may be used. Also, the metal film364 may be deposited by any arbitrary technique. For instance, plating,CVD or sputtering may be employed.

[0161] Finally, as shown in FIG. 17(c), respective portions of theadhesion layer 363, the metal film 364 and the mask pattern 358, whichare deposited on the patterned second silicon dioxide film 355A, areremoved by a CMP technique, for example. As a result, second metalinterconnects 365 and contacts 366, connecting the first and secondmetal interconnects 351 and 365, are formed out of the metal film 364.

[0162] It should be noted that a multilevel interconnection structuremay be formed by forming respective films, interconnects and contacts onthe second metal interconnects 365 through the same process steps asthose described above.

[0163] In this modified example of the third embodiment, while the firstresist pattern 357 is ashed and removed by oxygen plasma, the organicfilm 354 is not exposed to the oxygen plasma, because the second silicondioxide film 355 exists on the organic film 354.

[0164] Also, in this example, the second resist pattern 359 is removedwhile the second silicon dioxide film 355 and the organic film 354 aredry-etched using the second resist pattern 359 as a mask. Accordingly,since there is no need to ash and remove the second resist pattern 359with oxygen plasma, the organic film 354 is not exposed to oxygenplasma.

EMBODIMENT 4

[0165] Next, an exemplary method for forming an interconnectionstructure according to the fourth embodiment of the present inventionwill be described with reference to FIGS. 18(a) through 18(c), FIGS.19(a) through 19(c) and FIGS. 20(a) through 20(c).

[0166] First, as shown in FIG. 18(a), a silicon nitride film 402 isformed over first metal interconnects 401 formed on a semiconductorsubstrate 400. The silicon nitride film 402 is formed to be 50 nm thick,for example, and to protect the first metal interconnects 401 during asubsequent etching process step. Thereafter, a firstlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 403 (first insulating film), having asiloxane skeleton, is formed to be 1 μm thick, for example, on thesilicon nitride film 402. Next, an organic-containing silicon dioxidefilm 404 (second insulating film), containing an organic component insilicon dioxide, is deposited to be 50 nm thick, for example, on thefirst low-dielectric-constant SOG film 403. Then, a secondlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 405 (third insulating film), having asiloxane skeleton, is formed to be 400 nm thick, for example, on theorganic-containing silicon dioxide film 404. And a titanium nitride film406 is formed to be 50 nm thick, for example, on the secondlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 405.

[0167] The first and second low-dielectric-constant SOG films 403 and405 may be HSQ films, for example. The organic-containing silicondioxide film 404 may be deposited by any arbitrary technique. Forexample, the film 404 may be deposited by a CVD process using a reactivegas mainly composed of phenyltrimethoxy silane. Then, anorganic-containing silicon dioxide film 404, having a structure in whicha phenyl group bonded to a silicon atom is introduced into silicondioxide, can be obtained.

[0168] It should be noted that a thin film showing high etch selectivitywith respect to the first and second low-dielectric-constant SOG films403 and 405 and the organic-containing silicon dioxide film 404, i.e., afilm etched at a sufficiently low rate (e.g., silicon nitride film), maybe used instead of the titanium nitride film 406.

[0169] Next, as shown in FIG. 18(b), a first resist pattern 407, havingopenings for forming wiring grooves, is formed by lithography on thetitanium nitride film 406. Thereafter, the titanium nitride film 406 isdry-etched using the first resist pattern 407 as a mask, thereby forminga mask pattern 408 out of the titanium nitride film 406 as shown in FIG.18(c).

[0170] Subsequently, a second resist pattern 409, having openings forforming contact holes, is formed by lithography on the secondlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 405 without removing the first resistpattern 407. Then, the second low-dielectric-constant SOG film 405 andthe organic-containing silicon dioxide film 404 are sequentiallydry-etched using the second resist pattern 409 as a mask, therebyforming a patterned second low-dielectric-constant SOG film 405A and apatterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film 404A as shown in FIG.19(a).

[0171] Next, the first and second resist patterns 407 and 409 are ashedand removed with oxygen plasma. As a result, a damaged layer 410 isunintentionally formed in respective portions of the patterned secondlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 405A and the firstlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 403, which are exposed inside theopenings for forming contact holes, as shown in FIG. 19(b).

[0172] Then, the patterned second low-dielectric-constant SOG film 405Ais dry-etched using the mask pattern 408 as a mask, thereby formingwiring grooves 412 in the patterned second low-dielectric-constant SOGfilm 405A as shown in FIG. 19(c). At the same time, the firstlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 403 is dry-etched using the patternedorganic-containing silicon dioxide film 404A as a mask, thereby forminga patterned first low-dielectric-constant SOG film 403A having contactholes 411 as shown in FIG. 19(c). By performing this dry-etching processstep, the damaged layer 410 can be removed from the patterned secondlow-dielectric-constant SOG films 405A and the firstlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 403.

[0173] Subsequently, the silicon nitride film 402 is dry-etched usingthe patterned organic-containing silicon dioxide film 404A as a mask,thereby forming a patterned silicon nitride film 402A and exposing thefirst metal interconnects 401 within the contact holes 411 as shown inFIG. 20(a).

[0174] Then, as shown in FIG. 20(b), an adhesion layer 413, made oftitanium nitride, is deposited to be 50 nm thick, for example, on thewall faces of the contact holes 411 and the wiring grooves 412.Thereafter, a metal film 414 is deposited over the entire surface of thesubstrate to completely fill in the contact holes 411 and the wiringgrooves 412. In this embodiment, the metal film 414 may be made of anyarbitrary metal. For example, copper, aluminum, gold, silver, nickel,cobalt, tungsten, or an alloy thereof may be used. Also, the metal film414 may be deposited by any arbitrary technique. For instance, plating,CVD or sputtering may be employed.

[0175] Finally, as shown in FIG. 20(c), respective portions of theadhesion layer 413, the metal film 414 and the mask pattern 408, whichare deposited on the patterned second low-dielectric-constant SOG film405A, are removed by a CMP technique, for example. As a result, secondmetal interconnects 415 and contacts 416, connecting the first andsecond metal interconnects 401 and 415, are formed out of the metal film414.

[0176] It should be noted that a multilevel interconnection structuremay be formed by forming respective films, interconnects and contacts onthe second metal interconnects 415 through the same process steps asthose described above In the fourth embodiment, while the first andsecond resist patterns 407 and 409 are ashed and removed with oxygenplasma, a damaged layer 410 is formed in the firstlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 403 and the patterned secondlow-dielectric-constant SOG film 405A. But the damaged layer 410 can beremoved while the contact holes 411 and the wiring grooves 412 areformed.

[0177] Accordingly, the first and second low-dielectric-constant SOGfilms 403 and 405 may be made of a material degradable with oxygenplasma. For example, in general, if an HSQ film is exposed to oxygenplasma, Si—H bonds thereof are oxidized and the content of water and therelative dielectric constant thereof both increase to deteriorate thereliability and performance of the device. However, according to thefourth embodiment, the patterned first low-dielectric-constant SOG film403A, in which the contact holes 411 have already been formed, and thepatterned second low-dielectric-constant SOG film 405A, in which thewiring grooves 412 have already been formed, are not affected by oxygenplasma any more. Thus, even if an HSQ film is used as an interlevelinsulating film, the deterioration in reliability and performance of thedevice can be avoided.

EMBODIMENT 5

[0178] Next, an exemplary method for forming an interconnectionstructure according to the fifth embodiment of the present inventionwill be described with reference to FIGS. 21(a) through 21 c), FIGS.22(a) through 22(c) and FIGS. 23(a) through 23(d).

[0179] First, as shown in FIG. 21(a), a silicon nitride film 502 isformed over first metal interconnects 501 formed on a semiconductorsubstrate 500. The silicon nitride film 502 is formed to be 50 nm thick,for example, and to protect the first metal interconnects 501 during asubsequent etching process step. Thereafter, a first organic film 503(first insulating film), mainly composed of an organic component, isdeposited to be 400 nm thick, for example, on the silicon nitride film502. Then, a first silicon dioxide film 504 (second insulating film) isdeposited to be 100 nm thick, for example, on the first organic film503. Subsequently, a second organic film 505 (third insulating film),mainly composed of an organic component, is deposited to be 300 nmthick, for example, on the first silicon dioxide film 504. Next, asecond silicon dioxide film 506 (fourth insulating film) is deposited tobe 200 nm thick, for example, on the second organic film 505. And atitanium nitride film 507 (thin film) is deposited to be 50 nm thick,for example, on the second silicon dioxide film 506.

[0180] The first and second organic films 503 and 505 may be depositedby any arbitrary technique. For example, these films 503 and 505 may bedeposited by a plasma CVD process using a reactive gas mainly composedof perfluorodecalin. Also, hydrocarbon films or fluorine-containinghydrocarbon films, formed by plasma CVD, coating or thermal CVD, may beused as the first and second organic films 503 and 505. Morespecifically, the organic films 503 and 505 may be made ofpolytetrafluoroethylene, oxygen-containing polytetrafluoroethylene,polyimide fluoride or polyaryl ether.

[0181] The first and second silicon dioxide films 504 and 506 may alsobe deposited by any arbitrary technique. For example, these films 504and 506 may be deposited by a plasma CVD process.

[0182] It should be noted that a thin film showing high etch selectivitywith respect to the first and second organic films 503 and 505 and thefirst and second silicon dioxide films 504 and 506, i.e., a thin filmetched at a sufficiently low rate (e.g., silicon nitride film), may beused instead of the titanium nitride film 507.

[0183] Next, as shown in FIG. 21(b), a first resist pattern 508, havingopenings for forming wiring grooves, is formed by lithography on thetitanium nitride film 507. Thereafter, the titanium nitride film 507 isdry-etched using the first resist pattern 508 as a mask, thereby forminga mask pattern 509, having openings for forming wiring grooves, out ofthe titanium nitride film 507 as shown in FIG. 21c).

[0184] Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 22(a), the first resist pattern508 is removed by oxygen plasma, for example. In this case, even if thefirst resist pattern 508 is ashed and removed using oxygen plasma, thequality of the second organic film 505 does not degrade, because thesecond silicon dioxide film 506 exists on the second organic film 505mainly composed of an organic component.

[0185] Then, as shown in FIG. 22(b), a second resist pattern 510, havingopenings for forming contact holes, is formed by lithography on the maskpattern 509. Thereafter, the second silicon dioxide film 506 isdry-etched using the second resist pattern 510 and the mask pattern 509as a mask, thereby forming a patterned second silicon dioxide film 506Ahaving openings for forming contact holes as shown in FIG. 22(c).

[0186] Next, the second organic film 505 is dry-etched using thepatterned second silicon dioxide film 506A as a mask, thereby forming apatterned second organic film 505A having openings for forming contactholes as shown in FIG. 23(a). In this case, the second organic film 505and the second resist pattern 510 are both mainly composed of organiccomponents, the second organic film 505 is etched at a substantiallyequal rate to that of the second resist pattern 510. Thus, when thesecond organic film 505 is dry-etched, the second resist pattern 510 isalso removed simultaneously. The patterned second silicon dioxide film506A functions as an etch stopper during dry-etching the second resistpattern 510.

[0187] It should be noted that part of the second resist pattern 510 maybe left in the process step of dry-etching the second organic film 505.This is because the residual second resist pattern 510 can be removedduring a subsequent process step of dry-etching the first organic film503 (see FIG. 23(c)).

[0188] Thereafter, the patterned second silicon dioxide film 506A andthe first silicon dioxide film 504 are dry-etched using the mask pattern509 and the patterned second organic film 505A as respective masks,thereby forming a patterned second silicon dioxide film 506B havingopenings for forming wiring grooves and a patterned first silicondioxide film 504A having openings for forming contact holes as shown inFIG. 23(b).

[0189] Then, the patterned second organic film 505A and the firstorganic film 503 are dry-etched using the mask pattern 509 and thepatterned first silicon dioxide film 504A as respective masks, therebyforming a patterned second organic film 505B having wiring grooves 511and a patterned first organic film 503A having contact holes 512 asshown in FIG. 23(c).

[0190] Subsequently, the silicon nitride film 502 is dry-etched usingthe patterned first silicon dioxide film 504A as a mask, thereby forminga patterned silicon nitride film 502A (see FIG. 23(d)) and exposing thefirst metal interconnects 501 within the contact holes 512. Then,although not shown, an adhesion layer, made of titanium nitride, isdeposited to be 50 nm thick, for example, on the wall faces of thecontact holes 512 and the wiring grooves 511 as in the first embodiment.Thereafter, a metal film is deposited over the entire surface of thesubstrate to completely fill in the contact holes 512 and the wiringgrooves 511. In this embodiment, the metal film may be made of anyarbitrary metal. For example, copper, aluminum, gold, silver, nickel,cobalt, tungsten, or an alloy thereof may be used. Also, the metal filmmay be deposited by any arbitrary technique. For instance, plating, CVDor sputtering may be employed. Finally, respective portions of theadhesion layer, the metal film and the mask pattern 509, which aredeposited on the patterned second silicon dioxide film 506B, are removedby a CMP technique, for example. As a result, second metal interconnects513 and contacts 514, connecting the first and second metalinterconnects 501 and 513 together, are formed as shown in FIG. 23(d).

[0191] It should be noted that a multilevel interconnection structuremay be formed by forming respective films, interconnects and contacts onthe second metal interconnects 513 through the same process steps asthose described above.

[0192] In the fifth embodiment, while the first resist pattern 508 isbeing removed by oxygen plasma, for example, the quality of the secondorganic film 505 does not degrade. This is because the second silicondioxide film 506 exists on the second organic film 505, which is likelyto be damaged by oxygen plasma.

[0193] Also, in this embodiment, the first silicon dioxide film 504functions as an etch stopper during dry-etching the second organic film505. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the quality of the firstorganic film 503 from being degraded.

MODIFIED EXAMPLE OF EMBODIMENT 5

[0194] Next, a method for forming an interconnection structure accordingto a modified example of the fifth embodiment will be described withreference to FIGS. 24(a) through 24(c), FIGS. 25(a) through 25(c), FIGS.26(a) through 26(d), FIGS. 27(a) and 27(b), FIGS. 28(a) and 28(b) andFIGS. 29(a) and 29(b).

[0195] First, as shown in FIG. 24(a), a silicon nitride film 552 isformed over first metal interconnects 551 formed on a semiconductorsubstrate 550. The silicon nitride film 552 is formed to be 50 nm thick,for example, and to protect the first metal interconnects 551 during asubsequent etching process step. Thereafter, a first organic film 553(first insulating film), mainly composed of an organic component, isdeposited to be 400 nm thick, for example, on the silicon nitride film552. Then, a first silicon dioxide film 554 (second insulating film) isformed to be 100 nm thick, for example, on the first organic film 553.Subsequently, a second organic film 555 (third insulating film), mainlycomposed of an organic component, is deposited to be 300 nm thick, forexample, on the first silicon dioxide film 554. Next, a second silicondioxide film 556 (fourth insulating film) is deposited to be 200 nmthick, for example, on the second organic film 555. And a titaniumnitride film 557 is deposited to be 50 nm thick, for example, on thesecond silicon dioxide film 556.

[0196] The first and second organic films 553 and 555 and the first andsecond silicon dioxide films 554 and 566 may be deposited by anyarbitrary technique as in the fifth embodiment. Also, a thin filmshowing high etch selectivity with respect to the first and secondorganic films 553 and 555 and the first and second silicon dioxide films554 and 556 may be used instead of the titanium nitride film 557.

[0197] Next, as shown in FIG. 24(b), a first resist pattern 558, havingopenings for forming wiring grooves, is formed on the titanium nitridefilm 557. Thereafter, the titanium nitride film 557 is dry-etched usingthe first resist pattern 558 as a mask, thereby forming a mask pattern559, having openings for forming wiring grooves, out of the titaniumnitride film 557 as shown in FIG. 24(c).

[0198] Subsequently, as shown in FIGS. 25(a) and 27(a), the first resistpattern 558 is removed. Then, a second resist pattern 560, havingopenings for forming contact holes, is formed on the mask pattern 559 asshown in FIG. 25(b). in this modified example of the fifth embodiment,the sizes of the openings of the second resist pattern 560 for formingcontact holes are set larger than designed sizes of the contact holes inrespective directions vertical and parallel to wiring grooves forforming second metal interconnects. The reason thereof will be describedlater.

[0199] Then, the second silicon dioxide film 556 is dry-etched using thesecond resist pattern 560 and the mask pattern 559 as a mask, therebyforming a patterned second silicon dioxide film 556A having openings forforming contact holes as shown in FIGS. 25(c) and 27(b).

[0200] As described above, the sizes of the openings of the secondresist pattern 560 for forming contact holes are set larger thandesigned sizes of the contact holes in respective directions verticaland parallel to wiring grooves for forming second metal interconnects.Accordingly, even if the openings of the second resist pattern 560 forforming contact holes have misaligned with the openings of the maskpattern 559 for forming wiring grooves, the openings of the patternedsecond silicon dioxide film 556A for forming contact holes can be formedto be self-aligned with the openings of the mask pattern 559 for formingwiring grooves. This is because the openings of the patterned secondsilicon dioxide film 556A for forming contact holes are formed inrespective regions where the openings of the second resist pattern 560for forming contact holes overlap with corresponding openings of themask pattern 559 for forming wiring grooves.

[0201] In addition, the size of the openings of the second resistpattern 560 for forming contact holes is also extended in the directionparallel to the wiring grooves for forming second metal interconnects.Thus, the contact area between contacts 564 to be formed later andsecond metal interconnects 563 (see FIG. 26(d)) expands. As a result,the contacts 564 can connect the first and second metal interconnects551 and 563 together with a lot more certainty.

[0202] Next, the second organic film 555 is dry-etched using thepatterned second silicon dioxide film 556A as a mask, thereby forming apatterned second organic film 555A having openings for forming contactholes as shown in FIGS. 26(a) and 28(a). In this case, the secondorganic film 555 and the second resist pattern 560 are both mainlycomposed of organic components, the second organic film 555 is etched ata substantially equal rate to that of the second resist pattern 560.Thus, when the second organic film 555 is dry-etched, the second resistpattern 560 is also removed simultaneously. It should be noted that partof the second resist pattern 560 may be left in the process step ofdry-etching the second organic film 555. This is because the residualsecond resist pattern 560 can be removed during a subsequent processstep of dry-etching the first organic film 553 (see FIG. 26(c)).

[0203] Thereafter, the patterned second silicon dioxide film 556A andthe first silicon dioxide film 554 are dry-etched using the mask pattern559 and the patterned second organic film 555A as respective masks,thereby forming a patterned second silicon dioxide film 556B havingwiring grooves and a patterned first silicon dioxide film 554A havingopenings for forming contact holes as shown in FIGS. 26(b) and 28(b).

[0204] Then, the patterned second organic film 555A is dry-etched usingthe mask pattern 559 and the patterned second silicon dioxide film 556Bas a mask, and the first organic film 553 is dry-etched using thepatterned first silicon dioxide film 554A as a mask, thereby forming apatterned second organic film 555B having wiring grooves 561 and apatterned first organic film 553A having contact holes 562 as shown inFIGS. 26(c) and 29(a).

[0205] Subsequently, the silicon nitride film 552 is dry-etched usingthe patterned first silicon dioxide film 554A as a mask, thereby forminga patterned silicon nitride film 552A (see FIG. 26(d)) having contactholes, and exposing the first metal interconnects 551 within the contactholes 562. Then, although not shown, an adhesion layer, made of titaniumnitride, is deposited to be 50 nm thick, for example, on the wall facesof the contact holes 562 and the wiring grooves 561 as in the firstembodiment. Thereafter, a metal film is deposited over the entiresurface of the substrate to completely fill in the contact holes 562 andthe wiring grooves 561. Finally, respective portions of the adhesionlayer, the metal film and the mask pattern 559, which are deposited onthe patterned second silicon dioxide film 556B, are removed by a CMPtechnique, for example. As a result, second metal interconnects 563 andcontacts 564, connecting the first and second metal interconnects 551and 563 together, are formed as shown in FIGS. 26(d) and 29(b).

[0206] It should be noted that a multilevel interconnection structuremay be formed by forming respective films, interconnects and contacts onthe second metal interconnects 563 through the same process steps asthose described above.

[0207] According to this modified example of the fifth embodiment, thesizes of the openings of the second resist pattern 560 for formingcontact holes are set larger than designed sizes of the contact holes inrespective directions vertical and parallel to the wiring grooves forforming the second metal interconnects. Thus, even if the openings ofthe second resist pattern 560 for forming contact holes have misalignedwith the openings of the mask pattern 559 for forming wiring grooves,the openings of the patterned second silicon dioxide film 556A forforming contact holes can be formed to be self-aligned with the openingsof the mask pattern 559 for forming wiring grooves. This is because theopenings of the patterned second silicon dioxide film 556A for formingcontact holes are formed in respective regions where the openings of thesecond resist pattern 560 for forming contact holes overlap withcorresponding openings of the mask pattern 559 for forming wiringgrooves. Accordingly, the connection between the contacts 564 and thesecond metal interconnects 563 is ensured.

[0208] In addition, the size of the openings of the second resistpattern 560 for forming contact holes is also extended in the directionparallel to the wiring grooves for forming the second metalinterconnects. Thus, the contact area between contacts 564 and thesecond metal interconnects 563 expands. As a result, the contacts 564can connect the first and second metal interconnects 551 and 563together with a lot more certainty.

[0209]FIG. 36 illustrates a positional relationship between the openingsof the mask pattern 559 for forming wiring grooves and those of thesecond resist pattern 560 for forming contact holes in this modifiedexample of the fifth embodiment. As shown in FIG. 36, the size of theopenings of the second resist pattern 560 for forming contact holes arelarger than the designed size.

[0210]FIG. 37(a) illustrates respective positional relationships betweenthe mask pattern 559 and the second resist pattern 560 and between afirst metal interconnect 551 and a contact 564 in this modified exampleof the fifth embodiment. Specifically, the upper part of FIG. 37(a)illustrates a positional relationship between an opening of the maskpattern 559 for forming a wiring groove and an associated opening of thesecond resist pattern 560 for forming a contact hole. The middle part ofFIG. 37(a) illustrates the cross section of the upper part taken alongthe line A-A. And the lower part of FIG. 37(a) illustrates a positionalrelationship between a first metal interconnect 551 and an associatedcontact 564. FIG. 37(b) illustrates respective positional relationshipsbetween the mask pattern 509 and the second resist pattern 510 andbetween a first metal interconnect 501 and a contact 514 in the fifthembodiment. Specifically, the upper part of FIG. 37(b) illustrates apositional relationship between an opening of the mask pattern 509 forforming a wiring groove and an associated opening of the second resistpattern 510 for forming a contact hole. The middle part of FIG. 37(b)illustrates the cross section of the upper part taken along the lineB-B. And the lower part of FIG. 37(b) illustrates a positionalrelationship between a first metal interconnect 501 and an associatedcontact 514.

[0211] Setting the size of an opening of the second resist pattern 510for forming a contact hole at the designed size thereof as in the fifthembodiment, if the opening of the second resist pattern 510 for forminga contact hole has misaligned with an associated opening of the maskpattern 509 for forming a wiring groove, then the contact area(indicated by hatching) between the contact 514 and the first metalinterconnect 501 greatly decreases as can be seen from FIG. 37(b). Incontrast, setting the size of an opening of the second resist pattern560 for forming a contact hole larger than the designed size thereof asin this modified example of the fifth embodiment, even if the opening ofthe second resist pattern 560 for forming a contact hole has misalignedwith an associated opening of the mask pattern 559 for forming a wiringgroove, the contact area (indicated by hatching) between the contact 564and the first metal interconnect 551 does not decrease so much as can beseen from FIG. 37(a).

EMBODIMENT 6

[0212] Next, an exemplary method for forming an interconnectionstructure according to the sixth embodiment of the present inventionwill be described with reference to FIGS. 30(a) through 30(c), FIGS.31(a) through 31 c) and FIGS. 32(a) through 32(c).

[0213] First, as shown in FIG. 30(a), a silicon nitride film 602 isformed over first metal interconnects 601 formed on a semiconductorsubstrate 600. The silicon nitride film 602 is formed to be 50 nm thick,for example, and to protect the first metal interconnects 601 during asubsequent etching process step. Thereafter, a first organic film 603(first insulating film), mainly composed of an organic component, isdeposited to be 400 nm thick, for example, on the silicon nitride film602. Then, a silicon dioxide film 604 (second insulating film) isdeposited to be 100 nm thick, for example, on the first organic film603. Subsequently, a second organic film 605 (third insulating film),mainly composed of an organic component, is deposited to be 300 nmthick, for example, on the silicon dioxide film 604. And a titaniumnitride film 606 (thin film) is deposited to be 50 nm thick, forexample, on the second organic film 605.

[0214] The first and second organic films 603 and 605 may be depositedby any arbitrary technique. For example, these films 603 and 605 may bedeposited by a plasma CVD process using a reactive gas mainly composedof perfluorodecalin. Also, hydrocarbon films or fluorine-containinghydrocarbon films, formed by plasma CVD, coating or thermal CVD, may beused as the first and second organic films 603 and 605. Morespecifically, the organic films 603 and 605 may be made ofpolytetrafluoroethylene, oxygen-containing polytetrafluoroethylene,polyimide fluoride or polyaryl ether.

[0215] The silicon dioxide film 604 may also be deposited by anyarbitrary technique. For example, the film 604 may be deposited by aplasma CVD process.

[0216] It should be noted that a thin film showing high etch selectivitywith respect to the first and second organic films 603 and 605 and thesilicon dioxide film 604, i.e., a thin film etched at a sufficiently lowrate (e.g., silicon nitride film), may be used instead of the titaniumnitride film 606.

[0217] Next, as shown in FIG. 30(b), a first resist pattern 607, havingopenings for forming wiring grooves, is formed by lithography on thetitanium nitride film 606. Thereafter, the titanium nitride film 606 isdry-etched using the first resist pattern 607 as a mask, thereby forminga mask pattern 608, having openings for forming wiring grooves, out ofthe titanium nitride film 606 as shown in FIG. 30(c).

[0218] Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 31(a), the first resist pattern607 is removed using an organic parting agent, for example. In such acase, since the second organic film 605 is not exposed to oxygen plasma,the quality of the second organic film 605 does not degrade.

[0219] Then, as shown in FIG. 31(b), a second resist pattern 609, havingopenings for forming contact holes, is formed by lithography on the maskpattern 608. Then, the second organic film 605 is dry-etched using thesecond resist pattern 609 and the mask pattern 608 as a mask, therebyforming a patterned second organic film 605A having openings for formingcontact holes as shown in FIG. 31c). In this case, the second organicfilm 605 and the second resist pattern 609 are both mainly composed oforganic components, the second organic film 605 is etched at asubstantially equal rate to that of the second resist pattern 609. Thus,when the second organic film 605 is dry-etched, the second resistpattern 609 is also removed simultaneously.

[0220] It should be noted that part of the second resist pattern 609 maybe left in the process step of dry-etching the second organic film 605.This is because the residual second resist pattern 609 can be removedduring a subsequent process step of dry-etching the first organic film603 (see FIG. 32(b)).

[0221] Thereafter, the silicon dioxide film 604 is dry-etched using thepatterned second organic film 605A as a mask, thereby forming apatterned silicon dioxide film 604A having openings for forming contactholes as shown in FIG. 32(a).

[0222] Then, the patterned second organic film 605A and the firstorganic film 603 are dry-etched using the mask pattern 608 and thepatterned silicon dioxide film 604A as respective masks, thereby forminga patterned second organic film 605B having wiring grooves 610 and apatterned first organic film 603A having contact holes 611 as shown inFIG. 32(b).

[0223] Subsequently, the patterned silicon dioxide film 604A and thesilicon nitride film 602 are dry-etched using the mask pattern 608 andthe patterned first organic film 603A as respective masks, therebyforming a patterned silicon dioxide film 604B having wiring grooves (seeFIG. 32(c)) and a patterned silicon nitride film 602A having the contactholes (see FIG. 32(c)), and exposing the first metal interconnects 601within the contact holes 611. Then, although not shown, an adhesionlayer, made of titanium nitride, is deposited to be 50 nm thick, forexample, on the wall faces of the contact holes 611 and the wiringgrooves 610 as in the first embodiment. Thereafter, a metal film isdeposited over the entire surface of the substrate to completely fill inthe contact holes 611 and the wiring grooves 610. In this embodiment,the metal film may be made of any arbitrary metal. For example, copper,aluminum, gold, silver, nickel, cobalt, tungsten, or an alloy thereofmay be used. Also, the metal film may be deposited by any arbitrarytechnique. For instance, plating, CVD or sputtering may be employed.Finally, respective portions of the adhesion layer, the metal film andthe mask pattern 608, which are deposited on the patterned secondorganic film 605B, are removed by a CMP technique, for example. As aresult, second metal interconnects 612 and contacts 613, connecting thefirst and second metal interconnects 601 and 612 together, are formed asshown in FIG. 32(c).

[0224] It should be noted that a multilevel interconnection structuremay be formed by forming respective films, interconnects and contacts onthe second metal interconnects 612 through the same process steps asthose described above.

[0225] In the sixth embodiment, a patterned second organic film 605B,having wiring grooves 610, and a patterned first organic film 603A,having contact holes 611, are formed by a single dry-etching processusing the mask pattern 608, having the openings for forming wiringgrooves, and the patterned silicon dioxide film 604A as respectivemasks. That is to say, the wiring grooves 610 and the contact holes 611can be formed during the same etching process step. Accordingly, a dualdamascene structure can be formed with the increase in number of processsteps suppressed.

[0226] Also, in the sixth embodiment, since the first resist pattern 607is removed by an organic parting agent, for example, the quality of thesecond organic film 605 does not degrade.

[0227] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the silicon dioxide film 604functions as an etch stopper during dry-etching the second organic film605. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the quality of the firstorganic film 603 from being degraded.

MODIFIED EXAMPLE OF EMBODIMENT 6

[0228] Next, a method for forming an interconnection structure accordingto a modified example of the sixth embodiment will be described withreference to FIGS. 33(a) through 33(c), FIGS. 34(a) through 34(c) andFIGS. 35(a) through 35(c).

[0229] First, as shown in FIG. 33(a), a silicon nitride film 652 isformed over first metal interconnects 651 formed on a semiconductorsubstrate 650. The silicon nitride film 652 is formed to be 50 nm thick,for example, and to protect the first metal interconnects 651 during asubsequent etching process step. Thereafter, a first organic film 653(first insulating film), mainly composed of an organic component, isdeposited to be 400 nm thick, for example, on the silicon nitride film652. Then, a silicon dioxide film 654 (second insulating film) isdeposited to be 100 nm thick, for example, on the first organic film653. Subsequently, a second organic film 655 (third insulating film),mainly composed of an organic component, is deposited to be 300 nmthick, for example, on the silicon dioxide film 654. And a titaniumnitride film 656 (thin film) is deposited to be 50 nm thick, forexample, on the second organic film 655.

[0230] The first and second organic films 653 and 655 may be depositedby any arbitrary technique. For example, these films 653 and 655 may bedeposited by a plasma CVD process using a reactive gas mainly composedof perfluorodecalin. Also, hydrocarbon films or fluorine-containinghydrocarbon films, formed by plasma CVD, coating or thermal CVD, may beused as the first and second organic films 653 and 655. Morespecifically, the organic films 653 and 655 may be made ofpolytetrafluoroethylene, oxygen-containing polytetrafluoroethylene,polyimide fluoride or polyaryl ether.

[0231] The silicon dioxide film 654 may also be deposited by anyarbitrary technique. For example, the film 654 may be deposited by aplasma CVD process.

[0232] It should be noted that a thin film showing high etch selectivitywith respect to the first and second organic films 653 and 655 and thesilicon dioxide film 654, i.e., a thin film etched at a sufficiently lowrate (e.g., silicon nitride film), may be used instead of the titaniumnitride film 656.

[0233] Next, as shown in FIG. 33(b), a first resist pattern 657, havingopenings for forming wiring grooves, is formed by lithography on thetitanium nitride film 656. Thereafter, the titanium nitride film 656 isdry-etched using the first resist pattern 657 as a mask, thereby forminga mask pattern 658, having openings for forming wiring grooves, out ofthe titanium nitride film 656 as shown in FIG. 33(c).

[0234] Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 34(a), the first resist pattern657 is removed by an organic parting agent, for example. In such a case,since the second organic film 655 is not exposed to oxygen plasma, thequality of the second organic film 655 does not degrade.

[0235] Then, as shown in FIG. 34(b), a second resist pattern 659, havingopenings for forming contact holes, is formed by lithography on the maskpattern 658. In this modified example of the sixth embodiment, the sizesof the openings of the second resist pattern 659 for forming contactholes are set larger than designed sizes of the contact holes inrespective directions vertical and parallel to the wiring grooves forforming second metal interconnects. The reason thereof will be describedlater.

[0236] Next, the second organic film 655 is dry-etched using the secondresist pattern 659 and the mask pattern 658 as a mask, thereby forming apatterned second organic film 655A having openings for forming contactholes as shown in FIG. 34(c). In this case, the second organic film 655and the second resist pattern 659 are both mainly composed of organiccomponents, the second organic film 655 is etched at a substantiallyequal rate to that of the second resist pattern 659. Thus, when thesecond organic film 655 is dry-etched, the second resist pattern 659 isalso removed simultaneously. It should be noted that part of the secondresist pattern 659 may be left in the process step of dry-etching thesecond organic film 655. This is because the residual second resistpattern 659 can be removed during a subsequent process step ofdry-etching the first organic film 653 (see FIG. 35(b)).

[0237] Thereafter, the silicon dioxide film 654 is dry-etched using thepatterned second organic film 655A as a mask, thereby forming apatterned second silicon dioxide film 654A having openings for formingcontact holes as shown in FIG. 35(a).

[0238] Then, the patterned second organic film 655A and the firstorganic film 653 are dry-etched using the mask pattern 658 and thepatterned silicon dioxide film 654A as respective masks, thereby forminga patterned second organic film 655B having wiring grooves 660 and apatterned first organic film 653A having contact holes 661 as shown inFIG. 35(b).

[0239] Subsequently, the patterned silicon dioxide film 654A and thesilicon nitride film 652 are dry-etched using the mask pattern 658 andthe patterned first organic film 653A as respective masks, therebyforming a patterned silicon dioxide film 654B having wiring grooves (seeFIG. 35(c)) and a patterned silicon nitride film 652A having the contactholes (see FIG. 35(c)), and exposing the first metal interconnects 651within the contact holes 661. Then, although not shown, an adhesionlayer, made of titanium nitride, is deposited to be 50 nm thick, forexample, on the wall faces of the contact holes 661 and the wiringgrooves 660 as in the first embodiment. Thereafter, a metal film isdeposited over the entire surface of the substrate to completely fill inthe contact holes 661 and the wiring grooves 660. In this embodiment,the metal film may be made of any arbitrary metal. For example, copper,aluminum, gold, silver, nickel, cobalt, tungsten, or an alloy thereofmay be used. Also, the metal film may be deposited by any arbitrarytechnique. For instance, plating, CVD or sputtering may be employed.Finally, respective portions of the adhesion layer, the metal film andthe mask pattern 658, which are deposited on the patterned secondorganic film 655B, are removed by a CMP technique, for example. As aresult, second metal interconnects 662 and contacts 663, connecting thefirst and second metal interconnects 651 and 662 together, are formed asshown in FIG. 35(c).

[0240] It should be noted that a multilevel interconnection structuremay be formed by forming respective films, interconnects and contacts onthe second metal interconnects 662 through the same process steps asthose described above.

[0241] In this modified example of the sixth embodiment, the sizes ofthe openings of the second resist pattern 659 for forming contact holesare set larger than designed sizes of the contact holes in respectivedirections vertical and parallel to the wiring grooves for forming thesecond metal interconnects. Accordingly, even if the openings of thesecond resist pattern 659 for forming contact holes have misaligned withthe openings of the mask pattern 658 for forming wiring grooves, theopenings of the patterned second organic film 655A for forming contactholes can be formed to be self-aligned with the openings of the maskpattern 658 for forming wiring grooves. This is because the openings ofthe patterned second organic film 655A for forming contact holes areformed in respective regions where the openings of the second resistpattern 659 for forming contact holes overlap with correspondingopenings of the mask pattern 658 for forming wiring grooves.Accordingly, the connection between the contacts 663 and the secondmetal interconnects 662 is ensured.

[0242] In addition, the size of the openings of the second resistpattern 659 for forming contact holes is also extended in the directionparallel to the wiring grooves for forming second metal interconnects.Thus, the contact area between the contacts 663 and the second metalinterconnects 662 expands. As a result, the contacts 663 can connect thefirst and second metal interconnects 651 and 662 together with a lotmore certainty.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for forming an interconnectionstructure, comprising the steps of: a) forming a first insulating filmover lower-level metal interconnects; b) forming a second insulatingfilm, having a different composition than that of the first insulatingfilm, over the first insulating film; c) forming a third insulatingfilm, having a different composition than that of the second insulatingfilm, over the second insulating film; d) forming a thin film over thethird insulating film; e) forming a first resist pattern on the thinfilm, the first resist pattern having openings for forming wiringgrooves; f) etching the thin film using the first resist pattern as amask, thereby forming a mask pattern out of the thin film to have theopenings for forming wiring grooves; g) forming a second resist patternon the third insulating film, the second resist pattern having openingsfor forming contact holes; h) dry-etching the third insulating filmunder such conditions that the third insulating film and the first andsecond resist patterns are etched at a relatively high rate and that thesecond insulating film is etched at a relatively low rate, therebypatterning the third insulating film to have the openings for formingcontact holes and removing the first and second resist patterns eitherentirely or partially with respective lower parts thereof left; i)dry-etching the second insulating film using the patterned thirdinsulating film as a mask under such conditions that the secondinsulating film is etched at a relatively high rate and that the firstand third insulating films are etched at a relatively low rate, therebypatterning the second insulating film to have the openings for formingcontact holes; j) dry-etching the third and first insulating films usingthe mask pattern and the patterned second insulating film as respectivemasks under such conditions that the first and third insulating filmsare etched at a relatively high rate and that the mask pattern and thesecond insulating film are etched at a relatively low rate, therebyforming wiring grooves and contact holes in the third and firstinsulating films, respectively; and k) filling in the wiring grooves andthe contact holes with a metal film, thereby forming upper-level metalinterconnects and contacts connecting the lower- and upper-level metalinterconnects together.